Note#1: Wowzers! Sorry for the long delay, but school IS important… isn't it? Anyways…
Note#2 : I had typed up chapter 9 back in May, and was fully intending on uploading it... but I lost the disk. After a while of searching, I simply... forgot about this.
That is until bluezenith and KOA submitted reviews back in November. Thanks guys.
chapter nine: severed
The sound of birds chirping filled the room with its chorus of post-winter vibes. The weather was warming up noticeably fast, Hikari had noted to herself. It had only been a week since Reki had gone, and already the snow had melted away, only leaving behind a few patches of white ice here and there. In no time at all, it would be summer.
"Though, that's how things work here, isn't it?" She said loudly to herself. "I wonder when my day will come." She stretched her arms out before her, groaning a little to let out the last portions of her sleep from within. "Bah… it's bad to think so much early in the morning."
Filled with the aura and sounds of nature, she pulled herself from under her covers and sat at the edge of her bed, pausing for a moment to glance out the window across the room. Then, realizing how blurry everything was, she took her glasses from her bedside table and placed them on the tip of her nose.
"I hate these things…" She commented to herself, "Such a hassle to put them on everyday… I guess it's worth it, if I can have a view like this everyday."
After blinking a few times to adjust her eyes, she glanced at the window once more; this time seeing the outside world in all its glory. She then walked over to the window, wanting to get a better look at the day ahead of her.
"Beautiful…" She thought to herself. "I wonder if it was always like this."
The ground below was soaked with melted ice, giving the normally light brown dirt a richer, earthier tone. As expected, a few patches of ice were found near the buildings, well, and random places here and there. The trees, still empty of leaves, waved back and forth in the cool winter air, as if to acknowledge Hikari's presence. A few birds flew about the trees, finding the best branches to build the nest for spring.
"That's a sure signal of spring."
Dressed in her normal white blouse with brown skirt, Hikari stood in front of her mirror located to the right of her bed. After cleaning her face with a wet cloth, she began to tie her hair in her signature ponytail, pausing for a moment to gaze at the mirror.
"Time for a small change." She said to herself, still holding her hair up.
She untied her hair and let it fall to her shoulders. Brushing it down a bit, she noticed how different she looked without the pony tail. Not only did it cover a bit more of her head, but it also caused her to pay more attention to her face, rather than elsewhere.
"Change is good." She told herself. "And it'll save me a few minutes every morning."
She tossed the ties onto her bed and exited the room, heading for the guestroom to get breakfast started.
later
As everyone gathered around the dining table in the guestroom, not a single person said a word while Hikari served a breakfast of warm muffins and tea. The girls noticed something different about Hikari, most noticeably her hair. Everyone except for Kana that is, as she was busy gulping down her second cup of tea, and working on her third muffin. As soon as everything was set, Hikari sat down at her place, poured herself a cup of tea, and began nibbling on her muffin.
"So…" Nemu started. "What's up, Hikari?"
"What?" Hikari asked.
"You're hair." Nemu retorted, pointing to her own head.
"Oh…" Hikari reacted by combing her fingers through her hair. "Nothing. I was just a little lazy this morning."
"Lazy?" Kana nearly choked on her tea. "You? Lazy? No wonder the snow is melting so soon…" She said in a sarcastic tone.
"I think it looks nice." Rakka said. "Maybe I should grow my hair out."
"I thought it was time for a small change." Hikari said. "We can't stay the same forever, you know."
With that said, the room became silent. Everyone instantly remembered that Reki was gone, and that that was the single biggest change in Old Home. The caretaker of the small feathers was gone, and now somebody had to be the replacement. The house mother was growing old, and they all knew she wouldn't be around forever.
"We should take turns and take time off from work until they arrive." Nemu said, reading the girls' minds and referring to the new eggs found in an empty room in the west wing of Old Home. "We'll make one of them take care of the little ones."
"That's mean." Rakka said. "Making one of the newborns take care of so many children. What if they aren't as big as us, just like Kuu was? What then?"
"Well they'll get jobs, and one of us'll have to take care of the brats." Kana chimed in. "Not me, of course."
"No." Hikari said. "Our duty is of taking care of the kids, and we all should have an equal chance to do so."
"Aww man…" Kana groaned, and planting her chin on the table.
"Don't complain." Nemu stated, "Besides, they seem to like you more than any of us."
"…which happens to be the main problem." Kana added.
"Well, anyways, whose turn is it to watch them today?" Rakka asked.
"Ironically it's Kana's turn." Hikari said, pointing to a calendar on the wall in front of her. On it were several notes, obviously left by each girl due to the differences in penmanship.
"Aww man…" Kana groaned even louder. She retrieved her pocket watch and opened it to check the time. "Only… eight more hours to go…" She tilted her head so that she was face-down on the table.
"'Till what?" Rakka asked.
"'Till you guys come home from work…"
"Oh!" Hikari glanced at Kana's watched and saw the time. "I'm late for work!"
"What?" Nemu said. "I thought you go to work a little later?"
"Yeah, but since I have to take some days off to watch the small feathers, I have to go to work a little earlier to make up for it." She stood from her chair and dashed out of the room. "Have a good day, you guys." She managed to shout back.
"Yeah, yeah…" Kana replied, still face-down on the table.
later at the Bakery
Hikari busied herself by taking inventory of bread making ingredients that were stored in the back room. Since the baker and his apprentice, Dante, were already making the day's bread, and since the baker's wife was watching the store, she thought it would be a good idea to make sure they had enough supplies until the next shipment of goods from the local farms, or the Tooga. She took the inventory clipboard from the front counter of the shop, and walked to the other end of the building and into a large room carved out of stone. Entering to room, she immediately began taking inventory.
As she finished with the items stored in boxes on the floor, she climbed a stepping stool to count items that were found on the top shelves.
"Woah!" she yelped, balancing herself on the rickety stool. She danced around on the stool for nearly a minute until someone from behind secured the stool to the floor by holding it down.
"You okay?" Dante asked, looking up at Hikari.
"Yeah." She smiled. "Thank you." Now stable, she began to take inventory.
"Um…" Dante started.
"Yes?"
"Thanks for the bell-nut you gave me a few days ago."
Hikari thought for a moment, recalling the people she had given bell-nuts to on the End of the year festival.
"Oh, yes, I remember now." She said, going back to work. "It was no problem."
"You know… It really meant a lot to me…thanks…" He blushed as he said this.
"You're welcome." She said, still minding her own work.
Dante, on the other hand, continued to observe her. He noticed that there was something odd about her today.
"Your hair…" He began, "You're not wearing it up today."
"Well…" Hikari chuckled, "I was a little lazy today. Besides, I think it's more fitting for me, don't you agree?" She smiled to herself.
"Uh…" Dante had a look of disgust on his face. "I think you look better with your hair up."
"Well…" She said as she climbed down the stool, "Get used to it. It saved me a few minutes this morning, and I need that time to take care of the new Haibane that are to be born in a while." Still with her nose buried in her clipboard, she walked over to the opposite end of the storeroom, reading to take inventory of anything she happened to miss.
As she worked, she heard the door slowly creaking until it was closed. She turned around to see Dante locking the door, pocketing the key.
"What's this about?" She asked nervously.
Dante ignore her and advanced onto her. With his face emotionless, his breathing became increasingly loud; pounding at Hikari's head with every breath.
"This isn't funny, Dante!" She screamed, though she knew nothing could be heard from inside the store room.
She cowered in the corner and began crying. "Why?"
Not saying a word, Dante continued to advance until he stood above her. With a grunt, he grabbed her arms. Instantly Hikari began to fight back; she kicked and screamed but to no avail.
Dante would not let go.
"HE WHAT!" Roku stood from his chair, his fist curled into a ball so tight that a trickle of blood rounded the back of his hand, gathering into a droplet and falling to the floor. "How long has he been doing this?"
Hikari, still sitting on Roku's bed, did not bother to look up at anyone. She was embarrassed, no, frightened that the other would shun and shame her for not reporting anything.
"That was… the only time." She whispered.
"And you never told anyone?" Nemu asked camly.
Hikari shook her head.
"YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!" Roku slammed his fist onto the soft mattress, effectively making whoever was on the bed bounce up and down for a few seconds.
"Roku, calm down." Nemu sternly commanded.
"NO!" Roku screamed back, "This sort of thing will NOT be tolerated, especially with me around!
The young man stomped out the door as Rakka and Kana gave chase, leaving behind a sobbing Hikari, and Nemu, who was desperately trying to calm things down…
(PC)…
"I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS, GODDAMMIT!" I kicked open the door to the courtyard and jogged to my scooter. "You're going to regret this ever happened, Dante!"
Behind me were the sounds of footsteps and heavy breathing. I also noticed the faint sound of screaming and pleading; though I didn't pay any attention; my mind was dead, my body numb. I was ready for a conflict.
I pulled my scooter out of its parking space and started the engine. I was ready to leap forward with all the power that the scooter could provide, when a hand reached down and killed the engine. Irritated, I turned to my right, ready to punch the living daylight out of whoever owned the hand, only to stop myself at the very last possible second.
I froze in horror, as did Kana, whose eyes were filled with tears. The backside of my fist was mere centimeters from the side of her head.
"So is this you're answer to everything?" She sobbed.
I didn't know what to say.
"Roku, please…" Rakka chirped from behind Kana, "We can talk things over with Dante."
"No…" I softly breathed out, "Talking won't work…"
Reluctantly, I brished Kana's arm away and restarted the scooter.
"…you shouldn't follow me…" I warned, know full well that they intend to do so.
I opened the throttle as far as it could go, and sped away from the dimly lit Old Home.
(PC)…
About 30 minutes later…
As the hours slowly crept toward dawn, the party at Abandoned Factory started to cool down. The number of people attending was still relatively large, but the majorty of the attendees were ready to leave.
Then, in a flash, Roku drove his scooter straight through the iron fence. Like hell on wheels, he sped his way past weary guests, nearly running several over as he charged past.
He then jumped off his scooter, not bothering to slow down a single bit, and ran with the inertia that carried him. Not blinking even once, his vision around him blurred, only allowing him to see his target straight ahead.
"DANTE!" He yelled, as he slowed to a quick trot, shoving tired party goes out of his way.
Dante, who was with Hyouko and his group of friends, wearily looked up and spotted a furious one armed boy, charging at him.
"Roku…?" He pondered aloud, "What's up with him?" He asked Hyouko.
"Beats me." Hyouko responded.
Without warning, Roku stepped up to Dante, pulled his arm back, and focused his entire weight into his fist. The impact was so sudden, so strong, that Dante jumped back and fell onto a table full of various bottles and spirits.
"Whoa!" Hyouko gasped, witnessing probably the first act of any kind of violence in Glie history.
Whit a bit of effort and a grunt, Dante lifted his throbbing head to face Roku.
"The hell was that for?" He coughed out.
"Don't bullshit me." Roku growled. "The Communicator is gonna hear about this!"
"About what?" Dante forced himself up; the adrenaline pumping through his veins finally began to work. "About you punching me in the face without any kind of warning?"
"No…" Roku stood firm, "About you and what you did to Hikari!"
Dante's eyes grew wide with fear. A crowd began to form and encircle Roku and Dante, most of them out of curiosity, but all of them for entertainment and to keep their party high going.
"You can't prove anything!" He shouted. "She's lying!"
"I beg to differ." A voice only known to the Haibane spoke out.
"What?" Dante wiped his bloody nose with his arm.
Behind Roku, the crowd began to split down the middle, as if the parting of the Red Sea was being re-enacted by the party goers. A gray shadowy figure silently crept forward; behind him an entourage of young girls, a gruff and burly man, and an elderly man.
"pssst!" a sound was heard behind The Communicator.
"Nemu? Pops?" Roku turned to see the Girls of Old Home behind the Communicator. "What are you doing here?"
"We came to get you." Rakka whispered, "Now please, get over here." She cowered as she remembered that she was in the presence of the Communicator.
"Do as she says." The Communicator commanded.
Roku was hesitant. He still had unfinished business with Dante, but he couldn't disobey the Communicator. Like a defeated stray, Roku unwillingly went to join the girls.
"You." The Communicator pointed at Dante. "You are of age… you know the rules of this town… now explain yourself…"
"I have nothing to explain because I DIDN'T DO A GODDAMNED THING!" Dante yelled.
"I see." The Communicatory turned and ushered in an old man. "I believe the Mayor has something to say."
"Mayor?" Dante whispered to himself.
"Ahem." The Mayor cleared his throat, "I am sorry, Mr. Freeman, but I cannot allow such an act to go unpunished."
"Ridiculous!" Dante shouted, "I've done nothing wrong!"
"The evidence mounts against you, Mr. Freeman…" The Mayor shook his head, as if he were ashamed of Dante, "You are to be placed under house arrest for 5 years, or to serve Gate-keeper duty for 1 year. The choice will be-"
"HOUSE ARREST, GODDAMMIT!" roared Pops, "DANTE YOU GET YOUR ASS BACK HOME THIS INSTANT! I NEVER RAISED YOU LIKE THIS, YOU SON OF A BITCH!"
A wave of shocked faces spread amongst the crowd. The unruly behavior of Pops was never seen before, at least, not in public.
"Dad…I…" Dante was left with nothing but mumbles in his mouth. Defeated, he shuffled through the crowd, but not before being dragged away like a puppy by a demonized Pops.
Moments seemed like hours as time passed, and not a single word was said, nor a sound made.
(PC)…
The walk home seemed to drag on forever. Every time I would look to see where Old Home was in the distance, it was as if we were not only walking backwards, but as though Old Home were rolling away from us.
The early morning sun had barely begun to peak above the hills when the sounds of flocks of geese was heard from above. Like black specks painted against a canvas of harsh grays and a bit of orange from the east, I watched the geese float through the air, eventually leaving the early horizon better known as "The Wall".
I sighed to myself while reaching into my pocket for a cigarette.
"I'm sorry." I said, placing the white cylinder between my lips. "I'm sorry for the way I acted earlier. I guess my emotions got a hold of my common sense… and I went berserk…"
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Nemu gently elbowing Hikari, as if cueing her to respond.
"I'm…" Hikari began, "I'm sorry as well. Something as serious as this…."
"Stop." I said, not bothering to turn to face her. "That's enough. There's no use dawdling in the past like that; it's over now."
I could feel the tense atmosphere become heavier as I said that, so I wanted to lighten things up a bit.
"Say…" I turned to face Rakka, "What's for breakfast?"
disclaimer: with the exception of Roku, Gordon, Magdalene, Naota and the names "Horton" for the old clothes dealer, and "Dante" for the assistant baker, I do not own any characters that have made an appearance in the story. I did this for fun, not for money. If you own these characters, please don't sue me. Please don't ruin my fun. Also, if you wish to paste this onto your site, please ask permission first and give credit where credit's due.